Gas compressor magnetic coupler

Patent metadata

Field	Value
Publication number	US-9482235-B2
Application number	US-99207609-A
Country	US
Kind code	B2
Filing date	Apr 29, 2009
Priority date	Jun 20, 2008
Publication date	Nov 1, 2016
Grant date	Nov 1, 2016

Abstract

Provided in some embodiments is a gas compression system that includes a gas compressor having a drive shaft, an impeller drive shaft magnetically coupled to the drive shaft, and a shroud disposed between the drive shaft and the impeller drive shaft. In other embodiments provided is method that includes magnetically coupling a first drive shaft to a second drive shaft, receiving a rotational torque at the first drive shaft, transmitting the rotational torque from the first drive shaft to the second drive shaft via the magnetic coupling, and rotating a gas compressor impeller coupled to the second drive shaft.

First claim

The invention claimed is:

1. A system, comprising:
a gas compression system, comprising:
a drive housing comprising:
a drive unit shaft;
a drive shaft;
a gear with gear teeth geared to the drive unit shaft or the drive shaft wherein the gear is configured to transfer rotational energy from the drive unit shaft to the drive shaft;

a gas compressor, comprising:
a compressor housing directly coupled to the drive housing at an interface, the compressor housing comprises:
an impeller drive shaft magnetically coupled to the drive shaft through a first pair of axially opposed magnets and a second pair of radially offset and circumferentially opposed magnets, the impeller drive shaft including one magnet of the first pair and one magnet of the second pair, and the drive shaft including the other magnet of the first pair and the other magnet of the second pair;
an impeller coupled to the impeller drive shaft; and

a shroud disposed between the impeller drive shaft and the drive shaft, wherein the shroud isolates a first volume in the drive housing from a second volume in the compressor housing.

2. The system of claim 1 , wherein the first pair of magnets and the second pair of magnets define a magnetic coupler.

3. The system of claim 2 , wherein the magnetic coupler comprises a first rotor coupled to the drive shaft and a second rotor coupled to the impeller drive shaft.

4. The system of claim 2 , comprising a cooling system configured to cool the magnet coupler, wherein the magnetic coupler magnetically couples the impeller drive shaft with the drive shaft.

5. The system of claim 2 , wherein at least one cover extends over at least one of the magnet of the first pair or the magnet of the second pair to provide protection against contamination.

6. The system of claim 3 , wherein the first rotor comprises an external rotor and the second rotor comprises an internal rotor.

7. The system of claim 3 , wherein the first rotor and the second rotor comprise passive magnets.

8. The system of claim 3 , wherein the first rotor, the second rotor, or both, comprise an active magnet.

9. The system of claim 3 , wherein the first rotor and the second rotor comprise magnetic devices that face each other along a rotational axis of the drive shaft and the impeller drive shaft.

10. The system of claim 3 , wherein the first rotor comprises a first arrangement of one or more magnets, the second rotor comprises a second arrangement of one or more magnets, and the first and second arrangements are coaxial with one another.

11. The system of claim 10 , wherein the first and second arrangements are generally circular.

12. The system of claim 10 , wherein the first and second arrangements are non-circular or oval.

13. The system of claim 1 , wherein the impeller is coupled to a first end of the impeller drive shaft and a rotor coupled to a second end of the impeller drive shaft, wherein the as impeller is disposed on a driven side of a stage of the gas compressor and the rotor is disposed internal to a protrusion.

14. The system of claim 1 , wherein the impeller drive shaft is a first impeller drive shaft, wherein the gas compressor comprises a first impeller coupled to the first impeller drive shaft, and a second impeller coupled to a second impeller drive shaft, wherein the second impeller drive shaft is magnetically coupled to the first impeller drive shaft.

15. The system of claim 1 , comprising the impeller coupled to the impeller drive shaft, wherein the impeller is configured to be rotated at a speed between 15,000 revolutions per minute and 75,000 revolutions per minute.

16. The system of claim 1 , comprising a bearing disposed inside of a protrusion of the shroud, wherein the bearing is coupled to the impeller drive shaft.

17. The system of claim 1 , wherein the shroud comprises a protrusion that extends into the drive housing.

18. The system of claim 1 , comprising a bearing physically integrated into the shroud and configured to support the impeller drive shaft.

19. A system, comprising:
a drive system, comprising:
a drive housing;
a drive disposed in the drive housing; and
a drive shaft coupled to the drive;
a gear with gear teeth disposed between the drive and the drive shaft, wherein the gear is configured to indirectly transmit torque between the drive and the drive shaft;

an impeller system, comprising:
an impeller housing directly coupled to the drive housing;
an impeller drive shaft;
an impeller magnetic rotor comprising an internal rotor coaxially nested inside of an external rotor, the internal rotor including a first internal magnet located on an axial end face as well as a second internal magnet located on a circumferential face configured to rotate about the coaxial axis, the external rotor including a first external magnet located on an opposing axial end face from the internal rotor as well as a second external magnet located on a circumferential face located radially outward of the second internal magnet, wherein the internal rotor magnetically couples directly to the external rotor, wherein the impeller magnetic rotor is coupled to the impeller drive shaft; and
a gas impeller coupled to the impeller drive shaft; and

a containment shroud that separates the impeller drive shaft from the drive shaft, wherein the impeller magnetic rotor is magnetically coupled to the drive shaft via a magnetic force through the containment shroud, wherein the containment shroud comprises a protrusion that extends into the drive housing, wherein the containment shroud seals a first volume of the drive housing from a second volume of the impeller housing.

20. The system of claim 19 , comprising:
the drive system, comprising:
the drive shaft; and
the impeller magnetic rotor coupled to the drive shaft.

21. A system, comprising:
a centrifugal gas compressor, comprising:
a drive system comprising:
a drive housing;
a drive shaft within the drive housing and coupled to a gearing, wherein the drive shaft is supported by one or more drive bearings, and wherein the gearing is configured to convey mechanical power to the drive shaft;

an impeller system, comprising:
an impeller housing coupled to the drive housing at an interface;
an impeller drive shaft supported by one or more impeller bearings;
a gas impeller coupled to the impeller drive shaft;

a magnetic coupler, comprising:
a first rotor comprising a first axial face with a first magnetic device and a first circumferential face structured to rotate about a first rotor axis, wherein the first rotor is coupled to the drive shaft;
a second rotor comprising a second axial face with a second magnetic device opposing the first axial face of the first rotor, the second rotor also comprising a second circumferential face structured to rotate about the first rotor axis, wherein the second rotor is coupled to the impeller drive shaft, wherein the first axial face of the first rotor and the second axial face of the second rotor face one another and are magnetically coupled to one another axially, and wherein the first circumferential face and the second circumferential face are radially offset and magnetically coupled with one another; and
a containment shroud disposed between the impeller drive shaft and the drive shaft wherein the containment shroud isolates a first volume in the drive housing from a second volume in the impeller housing, and wherein the containment shroud comprises a protrusion that extends away from the interface.

Assignees

• Small Robert
• Kolodziej Robert
• Czechowski Edward
• Vetter Nathan
• Ingersoll-Rand Company

Inventors

• Small Robert
• Kolodziej Robert
• Czechowski Edward
• Vetter Nathan

Classifications

• F04D25/026 Primary

  with a magnetic coupling · CPC title

• F04D25/163

  driven by a common gearing arrangement · CPC title

• H02K49/106

  with a radial air gap · CPC title

• H02K49/104

  Magnetic couplings consisting of only two coaxial rotary elements, i.e. the driving element and the driven element · CPC title

• H02K49/108

  with an axial air gap · CPC title